I am very sad to say the once deer season came i never got back out to go duck hunting. But this deer season turned out to be my most successful by far, the most expensive, ($3500+!) the most frustrating, saddening, funny, and memorable. Now let me first start off by asking not to criticize upon my fate, or actions, all was legal. This season in the woods i saw 33 deer, granted some were bound the be the same deer seen twice, but 33 occasions i had seen deer. But here we go... It was the Saturday after the first week of the season. And my father had dropped me off to hunt the last 2 hours of light before my grandfathers birthday dinner. I was using my 12 gauge mossberg 835 pump slug gun with a 1.75-4x bushnell scope. I had sighted it in the Friday before opening day to hit a silver dollar at 50yards. I quickly scooted up the trail a hundred yards before i began to slow down and hunt. Upon walking through a bamboo thicket i heard an ungodly crashing to the left of me as what i would've guessed to be a deer that id spooked out of its bed in the bamboo. I couldn't see more than 10 yards so i didnt even bother trying to find the deer. I got to the other side if the thicket, crossed the brook and sat down to what looked like a decent spot to sit for the last hour and fifteen minutes. About 45 minutes had gone by and a decent buck stepped out with a doe and started to feed. I slowly pulled up and waited for a good shot on the buck. He stepped out and i pulled the trigger. I looked up to see him still standing there which showed id missed. I put it on him again and shot. This time he lay in a heap where he stood and didnt move a muscle. I was pumped. I called my father to drive the truck over to the section of woods. Upon walking up to the buck to gut him out, he came to life! I quickly pulled up as he dove and summer salted in front of me in a circle and emptied the rest of my slugs at him only to have him get up after my last shot and walk off at a trot. We searched 4 hours that night only to find three drops of blood. The next morning we found it had rained but still searched for another 4 hours. Nothing. That evening i drove down to the ktp to buy more slugs. On my way home a small doe stood on the shoulder of the road as i rounded a corner, i slowed down as fast as possible without slamming on the brakes or swerving, as she stepped out and i hit her at about 10 mph, i broke her legs, but before I could try and cut her she ran into the woods. I called the police they came and no deer, no damage to the car. That Tuesday driving to work at 530 a small 130lbs 6pt. Ran out as i was entering an overpass slamming into my front fender. This deer died, causing 3500$ worth of damage. But that's not the end, the following week i hunted the same piece as a fork horn stepped out at about 90 yards. I shot, and the deer ran off. I assumed a clear miss, because the deer only ran 50 yards into some brush and then spooked as i searched for blood. Which i found none of within 100 yard of where he ran. That evening i decided to hunt it again. My buddy ending up finding blood of the deer i shot at! We had only been a few yards off in the first place, but still hadn't found any blood within that hundred yards. This time we had a decent trail, and followed it for about 200 yards before coming upon a gut bag where someone had either shot it or found it. Dont get me wrong i felt extremely terrible about the 2 deer that I had wounded and not found. It is against everything i strive for in the woods, i made every effort possible to find those deer, but just wasn't good enough. I ended up taking two does the final day of the season to fill both my tags, (Drew a bonus) i was not happy with the results of the slug gun, i took the does with my 30.06 the last day. Not either of the bucks i had shot but they filled the freezer.

The worst thing about missing isn't the ridicule from your buddies, its the disappointed look of your dog

sounds like you need to learn your slug gun a bit more and let your deer lay down for a while. put that slug through their vitals and they may run off but will be dead within 100 yards if you let them lay down.

That comes with the territory bud! I wounded a buck up north this year with my '06 let him lay down for 3 hours and jumped him out of his bed and tracked him another mile in the snow and never caught up to him. Left very little blood after I jumped him from his bed, it's a horrible horrible feeling. That's why it is called hunting and not killing.

Always good to sit for ten minutes, mark the spot you saw the deer go in your head and sit. I shot a deer with a slug and where it was standing not much blood but where it went into the brush it was like a fountain. Piled up 50 yards or so from there in the brush. Usually use my .270, and the deer I've shot with that don't go more than 50 yards if that, but I sit tight after the shot before I look for blood.

Ya that big buck I'd shot had just dropped in a heap where he stood, and hadn't even twitched a leg, but I read up on the slugs I used and a lot of people complained about no blood trail, even if they found the deer no blood trail

The worst thing about missing isn't the ridicule from your buddies, its the disappointed look of your dog